Friday, January 30, 2015

So here I was reading through all of the submissions for this week's Reader Post when I came across this interesting idea for an expansion for World of Warcraft. Now I don't really think this could happen, but it doesn't mean it isn't interesting to think about. So have a look at what is on Paktu's mind.

This is set after WOD and even after the events of the next xpac, whatever that may be. At this point we, the champions of Azeroth have become very strong. We have rebuffed invasions from across time and space and we are together in our resolve to finish the Legion. We begin making preparations and you, the champion, are sent to Outland to check up on the degradation that is still occurring.

What we find is horrifying. The Sporregar are slaughtered. There are no survivors and what’s worse; their village is being consumed by the degradation and falling away into the nether. We report back to our faction’s closest base and we are told to head towards Oshu’gun in Nagrand.

The Legion is attacking. All the beasts are dead. The ogres are being massacred and Halaa is blown to bits. The Orcs, Drenai, and their Horde and Alliance allies are mounting a defense that is not holding. You, as a general attempt to hold a defense while all civilians get to Shattrath City. Throughout the entire defense you see the last bits of Nagrand crumble away until even the Throne of Elements is decimated.

The Naaru of Shattrath are already teleporting civilians and soldiers alike to the repaired and functional Tempest Keep and its satellite ships. While the Naaru would love to fight the Legion they say it is not the time to fight as we have already lost. The Military leaders of the Scryers, Adal, and other factons present have now informed you that Blades Edge, Shadowmoon, and Zangramarsh are suffering the same fate of Nagrand and Auchindun is sinking, indicating Terrokar Forest is falling as well. While the Naaru focus on the survivors that they can help you are charged to organize the defense of the Dark Portal.

Quest givers, Followers from your Garrisons, and a few faction leaders are present to help you along with a significant Alliance and Horde force. You give the rallying call and prepare to fight the good fight. That is when the rain begins. Infernals hail from the sky. Imps portal in at ground level. Seccubus, Hounds, Wrath Guards, Legionaires, and more flood the scene. Thrall is present. Rallying the surviving elemental forces of Outland.

A few Pit Lords later many of your forces are dead. Honor Hold and Thrallamar, two breakwater bases for the legions advance have now been lost. The stairs of the portal and the small bit of land surrounding it are all that remain of mainland Outland. Thrall gives the order to retreat. The Legion has won.

You and a few others remain as you notice Thrall does not move. A large mass of fire approaches. "It’s HIM," Thrall says, "Sargeras"

Spirits appear. Orcish ancestors, Drenai priests, Azerothian Heroes, some telling you to flee. Some delighting in a final fight. Thrall pushes you through the portal as the Dark Titan arrives and unleashes hell upon the spiritual and elemental army. Thrall unleashes a beam of energy encompassing the last will of Draenor. Your group is the last through before the Dark Portal turns off. No residual energy, no rift. It becomes apparent that the link is broken because Outland no longer exists.

This is now the xpac starts. The Army of Light is together. The factions unite (for all intents and purposes) and you use the dark portal to take the fight to the Legion itself. Be it to the Etheral Homeworld, to Argus, maybe even another planet that we know nothing about.

That would certainly be a way to start an expansion. Although I don't think we will see the death of Thrall ever unless it is in some I save the world from everything type deal.

As always thanks to everyone who sent something in this would not be possible without all of you doing so. Enjoy your weekend!

Thursday, January 29, 2015

So I have been playing Heroes of the Storm most of this week. Trying to level myself up to 30 so I can get into ranked games and see what that has to offer. Now I enjoy the game quite a bit. It is very fun and entertaining and I think it bleeds new life into the MOBA environment. I have gone over these things before so I won't get into it again. What I will talk about is what the community is doing.

Now for anyone has played other MOBAs you will understand that the rage players have is really next level. People always have something to say about others players at anytime. Regardless of what is going on. They will chirp their teammates to no end for the simplest things because they are, of course, the worlds greatest player and you should know better.

I thought Heroes of the Storm would be safe from most of this because of the team oriented gameplay and all of that fancy stuff. Was I ever wrong. Now there was some of it when I was playing the Alpha, but ever since it has gone to Beta and I will say since the Founder's Pack became available it have been completely different. People are raging on every corner. Telling everyone to do this and do that and raging over the dumbest possible things. This is making me always always want to either play with a group of friends or play with a single friend just for the purpose of trolling the rager which is rather humorous if you get the chance to do so.

So my thought on this matter is this. Is this because of the style of gameplay? Is it just par for the course for a MOBA game. I really don't understand why this has to be the case. I have played countless team games online over a variety of platforms and I will say nothing is worse then MOBA games. Now granted Heroes is not as bad as other MOBAs currently out there, but maybe this is just because the player base is still small.

Some would say because it is a game focused on Esports and the applications of it. Then I say no to it because there are plenty of other Esport games which teammates don't want to kill each other. Or maybe it is the combo of Esports and free to play. No clue, but I am trying really hard to understand.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

So here I was sitting around thinking that I haven't really done a list of anything voice related recently. Now I have done best quotes, favourite Voice actors and so on and so forth, but then I realized I have never done what I thought were the best Voice Acting performances in video games. Now obviously this is my opinion and some will probably disagree, but in the end it is my list isn't it.

5. Ellen McLain - GLaDOS

Not only is the Portal franchise something which anyone who has ever played always have a connection to. The Ellen McLain preformance as GLaDOS is nothing short of a masterpiece. So much so that the movie Pacific Rim featured the iconic voice4. Roger Craig Smith - Ezio Auditore

There is a reason Ezio is one of the most beloved video game characters of all time. Sure the story is well done and we see him right from a baby all until his death. To me though none of it happens without the masterful portrayal by Roger Craig Smith3. Troy Baker - Joel

Troy Baker has done countless amazing performances across tons of games, but I don't think you could even get him to say one was better than Joel. The Last of Us is itself a masterpiece but all the pieces had to come together to bring it to that. Without Baker this wouldn't have happened.2. Liam O'Brien - Caius Ballad

Most know him for the words "YOU ARE NOT PREPARED" and does an amazing job as Illidan every step of the way. Really though none of his performances are better than Caius. There really is something if you have played the games or not you can appreciated every word which comes out of Caius' mouth. Nothing is said without reason and without purpose and that is exactly how he makes it sound.1. Nolan North - Nathan Drake

Nolan North is in everything. He is the iconic voice actor of our time. Out of all of his amazing performances though I don't know how you can pick any other than Nathan Drake. He has a way of expressing emotion in every direction better than any other voice actor there is. Something which really can't be ignored. It will be a sad day when Uncharted 4 is over.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Fail Day! Yes that is right it is that time of the week again. Sit back and enjoy everyone's failures just so you have a marginally better day. Isn't it a wonderful thing? This week since I have been playing a lot of Heroes I decided to go into my hatred of those games who just don't know how to be a team player so here we go.

You Fail At Teamwork If...

Your concept of Stealth is similar to a Kool-Aid Commercial

You spam teammates with "Kill Steal" the entire game if they don't let you get the Killing Blow

You tend to state team strats in general chat

You give up your teams position with your ability at taking cover

Friendly Fire is your most common attribute

Your mouth breathing can be heard more than your voice

You rage the entire game if nothing goes your way

The adjective which is most often used to describe you is terrible

You are awesome because you owned it up in single player

Anyone that is better than you obviously no lifes the game

You destroy a region just because you wanted to see what a Nuclear Meltdown would look like

You kill teammates so you can pick up their weapons

Constant tab targeting results in entire zone pulls

and finally

You frequently jump off boats

There it is this week's edition of fail. Hope you all had a laugh, pointing some fingers at people, or just hung your head in shame.

Monday, January 26, 2015

Happy Monday! If there is such a thing. You know I was looking around for quite some time for something to showcase today. There were a few options, but then I remembered this one. You see one of my favourite parts of Assassin's Creed Unity is when Arno sits down in his room and starts reading the letters Ellise was written him. Now this video overlaps scenes from the game with the letters themselves. Now I will say this video does contain MAJOR SPOILERS for Unity so if you don't want those obvious don't watch it. If you have then I am sure you will enjoy this very much.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Sunday! Yep here we are with the weekend coming to a close typing away when it is cold as hell outside. Leaves me to wonder if the weekend itself was really a break from it all. Regardless of that fact weekends end with me answering some of the questions sent to me throughout the week so we should get going on that fact.

See the new trailer for The Orde:1886?For those who haven'tI must say the trailers more and more keep pumping me up for this game. Like I said before I was always interested in playing this, but with each passing trailer it keeps making want to play it more and more. It really is unfair isn't it? I also don't think this is a case of overhype as some have been suggesting to me there just seems to be too much showcased for that ending up as the result.Are you finding Rank play in Heroes of the Storm pretty unbalanced?I think for the moment if you are queuing as a single you will be matched against others queuing as a group which when group queues become a thing won't happen. Remember this is a beta and things come in steps. So if you are queuing for ranked solo at the moment this is something which you should expect. Does this mean you are bad at the game? Not necessarily just could mean you are up against an organized group of players.Any thoughts on Gat Out of Hell?Lots of dick kicking.

There you have it my question choices for the week. Hope you all found some use out of them. As always thanks to everyone who sent in a question if I answered it on here or not. I know I am slightly behind but I will get to yours if you are still waiting!

Friday, January 23, 2015

Friday, yes it is here your weekend is getting closer and closer. What are you going to do with yourself? Well first I assumed you came here to check out what is going on with this week's Reader Post. This would be a good choice because we have an interesting observation from Cekrad about the Orc Population in the Warcraft Universe. So here it is have a look.

The matter of the orcish population has bugged me for some time. I realize the issue will most likely never be handled, but I found it interesting enough to discuss.I'll attempt to recount what the orcs lived through:

After their defeat in the Eastern Kingdoms, part of the Horde was captured and imprisoned for ~10 years, during which many became lethargic. (imagine how many expired in the internment camps if you wish)

Thrall freed them with the aid of the Warsong and Frostwolf clans and they sailed west with humans ships, leaving the demon worshipping Blackrock orcs behind.

A storm forced them to an island near the Maelstrom; many ships lost or damaged. They were overpowered and captured by murlocs. Those who escaped struggled to leave before the island sank.

They crashed on Kalimdor; many ships destroyed. Separated, they wandered the wastes for some time.

They fought the centaur, humans, night elves (who had the upper hand and destroyed their settlements until the Warsong drank the blood), themselves (one can imagine tons of orcs dying here, but I found no confirmation aside from wowpedia listing the losses and heavy and massive), the Legion at Mount Hyjal (where their base was overrun and destroyed) and Proudmoore's forces.

This brings us to WoW, with the orcs starving in the barren parts of Kalimdor and the notable battles being the one fought by the Might of Kalimdor, the Outland (where they finally gained the Mag'har!) and Northrend campaigns with heavy orc involvement, and what could be considered the fourth war during MoP and Cata (where they gained the remaining Dragonmaw and Blackrock orcs).Now come the interesting parts:During the conclusion of the war, the supposed minority of orcs who supported Garrosh aimed essentially for world domination and put up a fight that made the Horde and Alliance finally work together. (see Vol'jin's 5.3 dialogue for example)And finally, after all this, they still seem to be the wheels and engine of the unstoppable steamroller we call the Horde.Do you consider them as such? Or do you see them more like the worgen, or how the trolls and gnomes were portrayed years ago? ("Gnomeregan Exiles", remember?) How do you think they should be portrayed?I know that being a playable race, they must always remain, but I'd find it refreshing to see them more as the last members of a dying race, their glory days behind.Look at Outland, this shattered memory of a planet. I would find it beautifully tragic to consider what we saw there the majority, the fate of the orcish race: Shattered Hand, Bleeding Hollow, Bonechewer, Laughing Skull, Shadowmoon, Dragonmaw; none of them saved by Grom's sacrifice, dying with their world, with the Shadow Council to keep them company.

There you have it. Quite interesting indeed I would say, would also agree that it probably will never be dealt with. Thanks to everyone who sent something in and have a great weekend!

Thursday, January 22, 2015

So for those of you who didn't know. Blizzard has just revealed you can gain access to the Heroes of the Storm Beta. This comes with the purchase of the Founders Pack. Here is a video they released to tell you how you can access it.

Now with that out of the way many have been asking me if this is wrong of Blizzard to do. Charging people to enter a game which is free to play and in testing. Truthfully they are not forcing anyone to do this . They are giving you the option to get in without your account being flagged. To me this is giving the people a chance for exactly what they asked for. Removing luck out of the equation and giving you a great deal and a mount you can get access to any other way.

If you have a problem with the prices or paying your way into beta. There is a simple choice just don't do it. There is not point in complaining about something when it is completely voluntary. When you do it makes you seem entitled and that crap is owed to you. The game isn't released you can wait for that or for your account to get flagged. That simple. So calm yourself with your Blizzard is greedy charging people to enter their beta. If they let everyone play right now it wouldn't be beta. Things still need to be tested. If you are int he beta hope to see you there if not well eventually maybe I will see you there.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Morning everyone else you are reading this in the afternoon then I guess afternoon. For awhile now I have putting off this list as one I have been wanting to do. One that makes you think about all those games you are playing. Games now it is much harder to have a myth in place because there really is so many ways to debunk gaming myths with simple access to the internet. That doesn't stop me though of listing my favourite video game myths of all time.

5. Shooting The Dog

I am pretty sure everyone hates this dog. Really no one was happy at any moment with this dog laughing at you again and again. Many times you wished you could shoot the dog. Then a rumor started that it was possible to shoot the dog. So yu would try and try again to shoot this dog thinking you were just too slow. Really it just wasn't possible, although in the arcade version of the game it actually turned out to be.4. Reviving Aeris

Now this is one for awhile that people were hoping was true. That they couldn't just let her die and not have a way of bringing her back. People just have problems letting go it seems wasting all that time leveling her up. The fact of it is unless you use the cheat to keep her in your party there is no way of bringing her back.

3. Sheng Long

Oh the problems which can be caused when something in translated incorrectly. This got everyone thinking there was some secret fight in Street Fighter II where you could fight against someone named Sheng Long. The truth of it all though was supposed to say "Dragon Punch" instead.

2. Play As Luigi

So in the original version of Mario 64 there was no Luigi. That lead everyone to believe there was some way of unlocking him in the game so you could play the younger brother. There were countless theories but the one which had the most merit came from the engraving above which said "L is real 2401" This was a guess at the number of coins in the game, and you had to collect them all to unlock Luigi. This was actually wrong as there are over 2600 coins in the game. All was fixed though when the game was released on the DS and Luigi became a playable character.

1. ET Landfill

There is a story about a game so bad that there could actually be a landfill in New Mexico with over 1 million copies of the game. This has never been disproven as employees of Atari have never confirmed or denied its truth. The fact that after so long there still is no proof either way makes you think about it, and I really believe until we know more it will remain the most intriguing video game myth.

There it is this week's List. What do you think? Is there one which should be on here that isn't? As always let me know and send in any ideas you may have for lists I should do.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Fail Day! Yes it is that time of the week once again. Time to sit back and enjoy everyone's failures just so you feel slightly better than you do right now. Last week we got the first look at the first DLC for Assassin's Creed Unity and since it was a free DLC I figured it was the perfect opportunity for a Fail Day.

You Fail At Dead Kings If...

You don't have Unity

You have yet to complete Unity and you started it

You have yet to download it

You don't like creeping around catacombs

You don't enjoy multi kills with guillotine guns

You are not playing it out of spite

You find it too difficult with the need for "Stealth" in an AC game

You don't want to synchronize more viewpoints

You are still working at opening all the chests in Paris

You have Uplay issues

You are still wondering where the hell Ezio is

You thought this was going to be a WWII DLC

You are still upset there is no pink colour scheme for your assassin colours

and finally

You didn't know it was free

There you have it this week's edition of Fail. Enjoy your tomb crawling

Monday, January 19, 2015

Monday! Now I know Mondays are supposed to be able me showcasing some form of Machinima or Animation or Live Action video of some sort for you all. What I am choosing to show you this week is one of the most exciting and intense games of Starcraft I have seen in quite some time. Also it is not a couple of pros playing. It really is jsut 2 everyday players participating in a Cheese only Tournament put on by LAGTV. If you don't know who LAGTV is then you are in for a treat and I really would suggestion you check them out. I also promise this may be one of the best games you would have had the chance to see in quite some time. So enjoy

Sunday, January 18, 2015

Sunday! Yes it is that time of the week. Your weekend is coming to an end and you are wondering where in the hell it went. I am just as baffled as you are as I just sat down and realized I had questions to answer for the week. Here we go though let's get to it.

So I read your Esports piece. Do you think it is only a matter of time before we see Esports neck and neck with other sports on television?Now I would say the viewership is already there. Millions tune in around the world on twitch to watch. Not only but thousands up thousands watch the events live. Now I would say right now the sponsorship is there to make this happen on mainstream television the question really is now do the events want that? Now I don't see it being a bad thing, but you never know. They may have to give up some broadcasting rights and change the equal and the expectations of content. I guess only time will tell.Do you think it is too late to be releasing games still on previous generation systems?Actually yes. Right now I would see anything still being released on the previous systems as a cash grab. It requires more development and it will be a downgrade in quality. Also you will be taking time away from the product you as a developer is best suited for release on. Giving your customers not the best product possible because you want to make more money really is the definition of greed. Really is sickening to think about.Whatever happened to Bagellord?Fell off a boat.

There they are questions all wrapped up for the week. Thanks to everyone who sent something in, and hopefully you and me can figure out what happened to our weekend.

Friday, January 16, 2015

Happy Friday everyone! Now as per the norm Fridays are about getting all of you into the habit of posting. Now I received an interesting request this week from Faeyia about posting a letter to Bioware she wrote in order to get a point across about the lack of feedback for the problems running Dragon Age Inquisition on the XBOX 360. Now normally I would say it is your fault for buying an XBOX to begin with, but I actually was feeling bad about the situation she was in so I decided to make it this week's Reader Post. So have a read and see what you think

Greetings!

I am one of the hundreds of thousands who bought Dragon Age Inquisition for Xbox360. I have always been a fan of not only your games, but of you as a company. I thought you were a company that truly cared about your fans, that you were guided by ideals rather than greed. Sadly, the way you have treated me and other consumers who have turned to you because of the many glitches and bugs ruining their experience of Dragon Age Inquisition, have proved me wrong.

Not only do you ignore threads we have created on the offical forums and on the EA Help forum, you actually blocked me from posting comments on your Facebook page! I wasn't being rude or using foul language. I was politely pointing out that you need to address the many problems with Dragon Age Inquisition for old gen consoles.

We paid the same amount of money as those who bought it for PC, XboxOne and PS4, and we expected to get a fully working game that would give us the high-quality gaming-experience that we have come to expect from you. BioWare, you need to step up and let us know if there will be patches dealing with the problems we've reported having on old gen consoles. If you can't fix the game that is fine too, but at least have the guts to tell us.

Thursday, January 15, 2015

So I am asked about a lot of things. Gaming related and otherwise, but what I am asked about more than anything else is ESports. Gamers all over have this need to know where to think it is going. Maybe it is peoples drive to want to participate themselves or maybe they just love the competition and want to see more.

Getting ESports to where it is now has already been a huge deal. Gaming is becoming much more mainstream and not just about no-lifers in their basements. Or at least the general public thinking that is the case. Saying you are going home and going to play some video games isn't something people avoid saying now. Everyone talks about what they are playing how they are doing and how they can improve. That is if it is a competitive game.

This is the reason ESports is getting so big now. People can see the best of the best and can actually watch how they can improve how they can get there and what all this practice these pros but in gets them to. Now that big time sponors are getting on board with tournament prize pools over the next few years we might see these ESports participants making 6 figure incomes with millions upon millions watching all over the globe.

This to me is what I hope to see. People who put in the work and being the best at what they do getting paid for the entertainment they provide. Let's face it ESports tournaments are becoming more and more competitive and more and more exciting each and every time. Hell I don;t know the last time I watch an event and was disappointed in the games I was watching.

This is the future and I really believe that what is happening instead of gaming becoming more mainstream it is that the mainstream is the gaming culture. Everyone else is just catching up.

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Here we are in the middle of the week and day 2 of the Closed Beta for Heroes of the Storm. Now I know I complained and complained until I got an invite into the Alpha. When I did I just didn't know what to do with myself. Now that I have had a chance to play the game and mess around with a few heroes I thought for those who just got in I would list my favourite Heroes to play for this week's list.

5. Nova

Now sometimes it feels wrong to walk around cloaked all the time and just shooting people in the head, but then I realize she is supposed to be cheap like that. One of my favourite pickups and if you are new to the game also pretty easy to play.

4. Illidan

Everyone loves Illidan so I figured Blizzard would put some good time into developing him. I love his mechanics and although the learning curve for him is higher than most once you get it down he can be very fun and rewarding to play.

3. Gazlowe

I picked him up because I needed a specialist in order to complete my daily. Since I did I have had so much fun playing him. Dropping turrets and lazer beams to the face all day. He may not be the strongest hero but works great with others and is never a dull moment when you are playing with him.

2. Valla

Valla was a free hero for me since I bought the collectors edition of Reaper of Souls. Now I love my Demon Hunters in Diablo and I'd say I love them in Heroes just as much. Just as squishy if not more but the damage output can get pretty crazy. Learn to know your limits with this hero or you will be dying quite a bit.

1. Tassadar

What can I say. I love the Tassadar character from Starcraft and I would have been pretty bummed out if he wasn't awesome in Heroes. I have not been disappointed. There are so many things he brings to the table. Yes his learning curve is higher than most but nothing that a little practice won't help out with.

There you have it my Favourite Heroes thus far from Heroes of the Storm. Now I will say I haven't had a chance as of yet to play them all, but all that sure this list would change that much even if I had. Good Luck in the Nexus to all the new players!

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Fail Day! Yes it is here and I am ready as ever to make people feel like crap about themselves and people they know. I know it is a difficult job, but someone has to step up and do it. This week as I decided to go with something every gamer has to deal with. When and if to do them in each and every game you play. The Side Quest, and just like with anything else you can fail at it. So let's find out how shall we.

You Fail At Side Quests If...

You never do any of them

You find them too difficult

You don't see the point in doing something unrelated to the story

You often ask "Where did you find that?" when talking to others about the same game

You have never suffered through the pain of killing 30 Tonberrys

You don't hate Feathers

You don't know why the strange relic is so strange

You have no clue why the pocket watch is so awesome

You don't hate the phrase "Last One"

You believe Bonus objectives are for no lifers

Anything which requires thought requires Google

Icefall Caves doesn't make you rage every time you see it

Firefly Pendants are a waste of time

and finally

You don't fear Omega Weapon

There you have it this week's edition of fail. Now excuse me while I finish up the last of my assassination contracts.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Well here we are Monday Morning wondering why the weekend had to end so fast. Sorry that I can't do anything about that, but what I can do is share a machinima for you to make the transition in the work week that much easier. I know it is so very nice of me. I know I have shared a bunch of Nixxiom machinimas before but I have never showcased the "in a nutshell series". So when the newest of the series Ganking In A Nutshell was released the other day I figured this would be the best time to do so.

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Sunday! Yes your weekend is coming to a close. I know it sucks and I am probably in worse shape then you are. I did though wake up to answer some questions so you all have something to read while you are in recovery. For those not aware of how to send in your questions there is a variety of ways to do so listed on the top right of the page or you can just straight email me at gaussafication@gmail.com. I will answer your question regardless if it makes it on to the weekly post or not. So now let's do this thing

Do you think it is right for someone like Ghostcrawler to be tweeting about WoW things now that he is away from it?Now I assume you are talking morally not if he is actually allowed to. Now first off I read all the tweets and really nothing bad so said. They way he was talking he was giving insight into the process everything goes through from a Dev standpoint. This outlook is really appreciated in my books and really lets you know the mindset of a developer. So to answer no I don't have an issue. The ones I have an issue with are the ones who were are let go and just go off about everything out of spite.The other day you were talking about Muliplayer. Do you think for the exact reasons you were talking about is why AC: Unity changed AC Multiplayer?Let's be honest. Assassin's Creed Multiplyer before unity was dumb and was a throw in. It really felt like it was just put in so the game itself would have multiplayer. I have been saying since Brotherhood it would be cool to use the Assassin type call thing from that game as a useful tool in adding a multiplayer to the single player game. I think Unity does that while still getting the story across and it not feeling out of place.Do you have Playstation Plus?Truthfully I think it is the best value in gaming. Free games each month on multiple systems and lets you play online. Now I understand people don't like the pay for online play crap but I believe it became a necessary evil to improve PSN.

So there you have it. Thank you to everyone who sent something in if I answered it on here or not. This could not be possible without your input. Enjoy what is left of your weekend!

Friday, January 9, 2015

Friday! Means the weekend is just around the corner and it is time to look through some of these emails I have and pick one for the Reader Post. Now in doing so this week I thought I would pick one I don't really agree with, but then others might be able to relate to. This post submitted by Kootz talks about with the recent Hearthstone expansion it is almost as if you are forced to buy into the Goblins vs Gnomes cards. I feel that yes some of these cards may seem as "must haves" but at the current moment this is new and everyone wants to try out the new. The other cards will come back once everything settles itself into play. So with that in mind here are Kootz's thoughts.

Anyone at this point claiming to see variety in the game should have to prove it. Record video of you playing a game where NO mechs were played or no gvg cards used.My guess is you cannot and you will come here with some anecdotal evidence as to why the game is still balanced (here is a hint: its because your deck uses the cards people hate). but its not just that. its that your deck has nearly the exact same composition as every deck out there. Hiding power behind pay-walls is never good and in the era of streamer popularity it goes without saying that whatever they do the majority of people that play this game (sadly followers who cannot think and build decks without someone else telling them exactly what of and how many cards to put in). Then they watch videos on how to play them.This is not a card game, it is a Simon says game where winning with some high priced deck combination equates to skill and some of the most arrogant behavior i have ever witnessed.Add to the fact that matchmaking is often times the most abysmal element of the game. I cannot see this getting any better as blizzard has specifically designed their market around selling progressively more powerful cards with zero regard to the balance of past cards.This is not a competitive card game it is a subscription service for skill. I challenge anyone to show me different. The burden of proof is on your shoulders as MANY have stated that gvg completely destroyed the scope of the game and at this point with the sheer percentages of gvg cards being used it goes without saying that what we will have in the future is not a constantly expanding set of cards.But instead a limited (must have) list of current powerful cards that users must subscribe to and stay current with in order to have a shot inside the current meta.and that does not sound like a card game i want to play. I know it does not matter to anyone. Knowing that what i think and choose to do will be seen as foolish. but in the end its the moral of it.I am a free to play person. have been since beta. This community used to actually care about balance. they put it first above all else. And blizzard back then claimed to care about us in that process..Now however that attitude is simply gone. and only angry people who don't want nerfs to the legendary deck they just copied from some streamer. so they counter any constructive criticisms with hate and vague counterpoints of no real use.Preparing for that here i state that im done with this attempt at a card game. but ultimately i feel blizzards "attempted cardgame" is simply a tricky marketplace designed around that instead of actual gameplay. and the truth of that comes out with every new pack.

Thursday, January 8, 2015

So I had this discussion with a few people I know over the holidays, and it really is a simple one. If a major draw of a game is its multiplayer is a single player story mode or campaign really that important. Now this discussion was going off and on for a few days talking about how certain games treat this situation. So I will give you really what it all came down to.

What I really have a problem with is a game which focus is mulitplayer throws in a lackluster single player mode which really is insulting to the players. It is full of holes and the really does nothing to make you feel like part of the "world". FPS games are notorious for creating single player modes like this. Don't try to be something you aren't by trying to bring more players to your game. It is insulting to the players who are buying your game for the multiplayer because you could have spent more time on it. Also for those who bought it for single player will never look are your series the same way. I am just as pissed off when this is done the other way. If a game is obviously a single player game don't give a multiplayer option which makes you wonder how it even made it to production.

What I argued for is a single player mode which teaches those not comfortable or familiar enough with the game to learn something. Really so when they finally make the jump to multiplayer they don't feel like the worst player in the history of the world. This doesn't mean the campaign has to be a masterpiece, but it has to keep the player interested enough so that they keep playing and keep learning. This really is what you want and really is what will bring new players to the game. Will make it less of a chore to invite new friends to play and really get down to what gaming should be and that is fun.

Now if the campaign is something special then it is on a whole new other level. Sure the game is built for multiplayer and that may be the case but you and even those who are jsut going to put endless hours into the multiplayer will play through it and enjoy every minute. When it got down to this I think Starcraft is the perfect example of this situation. It is built as an ESport no one is going to deny that, but it also has the campaign to teach the new players and keep the veterans interested to play through it.

So what do you all think? Do you care if the single player is worth playing? Do you mind if it seems to be just an addon to the game?

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Here we are smack dab in the middle of the week looking for something to look forward to. With it the start of the year and everything to it really is a great time to look forward to the things to come. So honestly coming up with a list this week was rather simple. What things am I looking forward to the most in the next year gaming wise? Well let's just have a look shall we.

5. Bloodborne

There are few games which I know nothing about and can watch the first 10 seconds of a trailer and now I want to play it. This game will be challenging and unforgiving and is going to make me rage endlessly again and again. And all that couldn't make me happier

4. The Order: 1886

This game has interested me since it was announced. The backstory, the gameplay the attention to detail just have me crazy with anticipation. Then, of course, came the Silent Night trailer and it just re-enforced the point home I had to play it even more.

3. Final Fantasy XV

There has never been a Final Fantasy game I wasn't excited to get my hands on. This is no exception. You can call me a fanboy all you want but I really have never been angry with the time I have spent playing one of them. They always lead to comparison but they never disappoint.

2. The Witcher 3

It physically hurt me when this game was delayed till May. One thing I do know though is the game will not be released until they feel it is ready and people will get the most out of it. So if that means I have to wait a few months I guess I will have to accept that.

1. Uncharted 4

I wish this came out tomorrow. Ever since Uncharted 3 ended I wanted to play Uncharted 4 even if ending at 3 actually made perfect sense. Drake makes every game interesting and fun to play in a variety of ways. Also Naughty Dog is Naughty Dog.

There they are, agree? Disagree? You know the drill let me know either way. There really is much to be desired this coming year and I am hoping they don't disappoint.

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Here we are the first Fail Day of the New Year. Instead of talking about all that new year new me bullshit I am going to focus on the more important things. This week's Fail Day is all about getting back into your gaming routines after you have been out of them for the holidays so here we go.

You Fail At Getting Back Into The Swing Of Things If...

You have no memory of the story in the games you were playing

Your chair just isn't right to sit in because you are heavier

Your arm is still cramped up from all the Wii Sports you have been playing

Somehow all your controls are dead

You are short a HDMI cable

Updates, updates everywhere

You left all your games somewhere else because you thought you were going to play them

You still hate dailies

You are too slow for muliplayer

You seem to be the only one who had a holiday break

Fire gives you haste

Your left and right clicking is skewed

You are clicking to move in an RTS

and finally

No one got you a new mouse pad

There you have it this week's edition of fail. I am back and ready to go with all the daily madness which follows it and glad to have you around for it.

Monday, January 5, 2015

So here I am back from my holiday. Thank you to everyone who took the time to wish me well on my holidays. Even to those who wished me well but also wished me injury so I could comeback and blog sooner(Looking at you Swifthooves). They are over now I survived and although my liver is still probably recovering it is time to get back in the swing of things. It is Monday, and Monday still is the day of showcasing even if it is a new year. I will warn all of you who haven't finished Assassin's Creed Unity yet as this tribute to the man known as Arno Dorian does contain spoilers from the game. So you were warned.